Tuskegee Airmen, Lieutenant Colonel Lee Archer, Jr., left, Captain Roscoe Brown, Colonel Charles McGee, Lieutenant Colonel Harry Stewart, Jr, Major General Lucius Theus, and Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Jefferson admire the plaque in their honor from the Selfridge Base Community Council after a luncheon to honor them in 2006. / WILLIAM ARCHIE/Detroit Free Press

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Associated Press

A former Tuskegee Airman will be honored by the Detroit Historical Society for his contributions to black history.

Lt. Colonel Alexander Jefferson also will discuss his time in the military as part of the Society's Scholar Series. The program is scheduled at 6 p.m. on April 17 at the Detroit Historical Museum.

The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of black combat pilots who trained in Alabama during World War II. They helped pave the way for desegregation in the U.S. military.

Jefferson enlisted in the Army Reserves and initially was turned down for flight training. He was assigned in 1943 to the 332nd Fighter Group. The group flew the "Red Tail" P-51 Mustangs while escorting bombers and giving air support to ground troops.